In this election cycle, debates are perhaps the most important because we have such a large swath of electorate that is still undecided, said Sara Sadhwani, a politics professor at Pomona College.
If Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald ­enters the race, our poll suggests it would become an even tighter four-horse race, with Connolly ­suffering most damage - but it would still leave nearly a third of people in the undecided camp. These unenthusiastic voters hold the key to Áras an Uachtaráin and a wise candidate would be offering them something to latch on to.